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Dr Cias Tsotetsi appointed as Campus Vice-Principal: Academic and Research on the UFS Qwaqwa Campus

12 December 2024 | Story Lacea Loader | Photo Supplied

Dr Cias Tsotsetsi — Dr Cias Tsotetsi, newly appointed Campus Vice-Principal: Academic and Research on the UFS Qwaqwa Campus.

The University of the Free State (UFS) is pleased to announce the appointment of Dr Cias Tsotetsi as the Campus Vice-Principal: Academic and Research on the UFS Qwaqwa Campus as from 1 January 2025.

He is currently Senior Lecturer and Assistant Dean in the Faculty of Education on the UFS Qwaqwa Campus. He holds the following qualifications: BEd(Hons), Postgraduate Diploma in Education, Magister Educationis with specialisation in Policy Studies and Governance in Education, and PhD with specialisation in Philosophy and Policy Studies in Education – all from the UFS.

Dr Tsotetsi operated in the school environment for about 24 years before joining this university in 2010. Since then, he has taught several modules in the Faculty of Education and published several co-authored research articles as well as conference papers on community engagement, teacher development, and participatory action research methodologies, among others. He is also well versed in supervising postgraduate students.

He has received awards from both the university’s Scholarship of Teaching and Learning and the Research committees for his research and academic scholastic performance. He is a member of various committees, such as the Faculty of Education Academic Advisory Board and the Committee for Title Registration and has been participating in partnerships and in NRF-funded projects with peers from universities such as the University of KwaZulu-Natal, the University of Zululand, the Durban University of Technology, and the University of Venda.

“Dr Tsotetsi has a clear understanding of the current systems and operations on the Qwaqwa Campus and is positioned to drive its development. His experience and initiatives involving staff and postgraduate students are exceptional and inspiring. We look forward to Dr Tsotetsi’s valuable contribution to the UFS Qwaqwa Campus and the institution in his new position,” says Prof Prince Ngobeni, Campus Principal of the Qwaqwa Campus.

“I feel honoured to serve the university – and the Qwaqwa Campus in particular – and look forward to working with the campus and its management to develop the research portfolio,” says Dr Tsotetsi.

News Archive

UFS Department of Computer Science and Informatics motivates programming success among learners

2015-04-23

From Sentraal High School are from the left: Albert Dreyer (full marks, Grade 9); Corlé van der Walt (full marks, Grade 10); Janco Venter (full marks, Grade 10); Soné du Pisanie (full marks, Grade 10) en Handré Venter (Grade 9).

A group of learners from the Free State, who are taught at and by the University of the Free State’s Department of Computer Science and Informatics (under the Python project), came first in the Talent Search round of the South African Computer Olympiad (SACO).

According to Dr Anelize van Biljon, senior lecturer in the Department of Computer Science and Informatics, the Olympiad is presented in three main rounds: the Talent Search, the Application Olympiad, and the Programming Olympiad.

At the UFS’s Department of Computer Science and Informatics’ Python project, pupils from various schools in Bloemfontein attend programming classes where they are taught by staff and students of the department. These students are benefitted by the opportunity to transfer their knowledge to others. All the classes are free of charge.

Anelize explains: “The name was chosen because we use the Python programming language. It is a language with considerable appeal – not one of the fastest – which can be learnt relatively quickly, and which conforms to SACO requirements. The purpose of this programming is to implement algorithms (the learner is given a problem, makes a plan to solve it, and does the necessary programming). Thus, it is not about the looks of the programme, but about its effectiveness and speed.”
Anelize is the initialiser and co-ordinator of the Python project. "I started this project in 2010 in the Department of Computer Science and Informatics for learners from Grades 6 to 12 to encourage them to take the subject. These classes exposed them to something more than school work. I enjoy this kind of competitions and am also very involved with Maths Olympiads.

Achievements such as these are good advertisements for the Department of Computer Science and Informatics,” she said.

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